Free Learning, Free Resource, Freedom in Open Source

24 March 2012 - Chengdu, China

I'm a big believer in open source software. Most of the code I write, projects I create and ideas that I'm conceptualized are contributed back somewhere online. I like to give back because I'm able to start with so much that's already been give by others. I mostly work with Drupal so most of this sharing are contributions back to Drupal: my Drupal contributions.

Yet, open source remains largely underused and highly misunderstood in China. I'd like to discuss some of the benefits of embracing open source as opposed to China's current "tradition" of pirated software and pirated learning resources.

Everything Online is (Already) Free in China

While it is true that any decent computer user can pretty much get all of their music and movies and even software for free online, this is especially easy in China. Someone outside of China who is looking for free stuff will likely be scouring the torrent space. Recent events have been made this somewhat more legally dubious but many people continue to get their sitcoms and mp3s freely online.

In China, free movies, MP3s and even software are even easier to get. No need for torrents. Just head over to China largest and most used search engine Baidu.com and you are already one or two clicks away from free music or movies.

Baidu MP3 provides a free search engine for finding music from which you can either listen to the songs via their player or download them to your computers.

Baidu Video lets you search for videos like you would from Google, except that it also links you to tons of free movies and TV shows. So instead of having to pay to view, you can just search and watch online.

(Note: China also has a thriving market on the streets or in various shops for buying pirated DVDs and CDs but in my experience, these are being pirated from these online websites.)

"Pirated for Free" Doesn't Equal Open Source Goodness

I think part of the reason why open source software is under utilized in China is the fact that since everything is already free, people don't really see the benefit in open source. For example, why would I use something that is free to everyone when I can use propretary software that is developed and supported by a large corporation like Microsoft?

It is interesting to note that when you buy a computer in China you are most likely getting a pirated version of Windows as well as pirated version of Word, Powerpoint and Excel. It is also worth noting that many servers in China use Windows (pirated, of course!) as opposed to Linux. Microsoft Windows is truly King in China.

One of the funniest things you'll see in China are the Apple Computers that use Windows. Chinese users want their various programs for watching free movies and in fact are much more used to using Windows, so they end up buying a MacBook Pro for the case since many end up installing Windows instead. Oh tragedy of tragedies...

For me, "Open Source Goodness" lies in the fact that if I want or need, I can peal open the inside of program or process and see what's happening. This is huge beneficial if you want to learn or tweak or just mess around.

The other aspect of open source that many people miss is that closed source, while on the outside appears safer since you can't see what it is doing, also means less people are watching. Closed source tends to be safe through obscurity as opposed to open source code which benefits from having more people watching. Open source code is more secure. It is safer because people are invested in the product as users, creators and business owners.

Free Learning, Free Resource: Freedom in Open Source

There is a lot more that could be added on this topic, but I think I'd like to end with a few tidbits of why Open Source makes me free-er:

Free Resources:

Open Source provides a ton of resources that Chinese users have yet to get. Open Office is one of many that can improve how we do things. Other examples include editing software like GIMP.

I find it saddening that Chinese users tend to think first about getting the free pirated version without once thinking about the various tools that exist in the open source space.

In my web design class, many people have turned to Dreamweaver when in fact there are dozens of free and open source that provide the same functionality.

Free Learning:

Once you've embraced software and languages that are open source, you'll notice that a surprising amount of learning resources are free too. It's still true that there are proprietary books and videos too, but most times you can find the information you need just as easily as paid resources.

-Mark